Stone gatherer



L. D. TETER STONE GATHERER Filequov. 25,7;1922 5 sheets-sheet 1 Imm/blot.

elan'd D. Te er- July 15 1924. 1,501,379

L. D. TETER STONE GATHERER AWW, www,

- Filed Nov. l 25 '1922 5 sheets-sheet 5 MN 1 m F IIII n: .n H WIM EMM im ai I Wu Iii mw me o mw NWN MN WN f a .Sv n NM Lelazzd. TeeJ-M July f15, 1.924;

L. D. TETER STONE GATHER FiledA Nov. 25 ll 922 5 sheets-sheet 5 y aand 2J 7@ eef.

Patented .hay 15, 1924.

Tas

LELAND D. TETER, OFLIVINGSTONVILLE, NEW YORK.

STONE GATHERER.

Application filed November 25, 1922.

To all whom t may concern: n

Be it known that I, LnLAND D. TIMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Livingstonville, in the county f Schoharie and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Stone Gatherers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its obj ect the provision of a machine of strong and durable construction which may be readily drawn over a field and in which will be embodied means whereby, during the travel of the machine, stones will be taken from the ground and delivered into a receptacle upon the machine. The invention also has `for its object the provision of means in such a machine for raising the stone-gathering members when the machine is to be moved to a place of deposit, and also seeks to provide means whereby, if a large rock should be encountered, the stone-gathering members may yield to the impact and be momentarily arrested but resume operation after the large rock or other obstruction hasbeen passed. Other incidental objects of the invention will appear in the course of the following description, and the invention resides in certain novel features which will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying my invention, the dust guard oit/gear case being removed;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the same;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional elevation of a portion of the mechanism` for vraising and lowering the gatherers;

Fig. 5 is a similar view of another portion of the same mechanism;

Fig. 6 is a transverse sec'tion on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged transverse section on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged transverse section through the main driving sprocket, and

Fig. 9 is a similar view through the driving sprocket on the beater or gatherer shaft.

In carrying out the invention, I employ a frame consisting of truss-like side bars or sills 1 having their front ends upturned, as shown at 2, whereby to pro-vide clearance for the steering wheels 3 and having their Serial No. 603,200.

4rear ends turned upwardly, as shown at 4,

and then extended rearwardly, as shown at 5, to be carried by the rear axle 6 and lfurnish a support for the operating mechaat the ends of the front axle 9 so' as to turn 1 about vertical pivots 1.0-in` steering, and spindle arms 11 project forwardly from thek said pivots and are connected by a tie rod 12 in a well-known manner. At its center, the tie rod is connectedy with a coupling plateV or head 13 so as to move therewith, and this coupling head is pivotally attached to the frontend of a drawbar 14 which is rigidly secured upon the front axle and also secured to a cross bar 15 which constitutes a part of the support for the receptacle 7. The coupling head 13 may move pivotally in a horizontal plane about the front end of the drawbar 14 and at its front end thev said head carries aV horizontal pivot'16-upon which the draft pole or tongue 17 is mounted.- It will thus be readily seen that the tongue mayv move in a vertical plane so that irregularities in the surface over whichthe machine is drawn, may be accommodated without imposing excessive strain or fatigue upon the draft animals and it may also be readily turned sidewise so as to vary the angles of the steering wheels and therebyeflect steering of the machine. Braces or radius rods 18 extend from the cross bar 15 to the front axle and are rigidly secured tothe axle and the cross bar so as to maintain the front axle in parallelism with the rear axle Vand to impart the necessary rigidity to the frame. Braces 19 are extended between the top of the receptacle to the upturned portions 2 of the sills, the extremities of said upturned portions being supported by the axle through posts or standards20 rising from the axle adjacent the ends of the same. Y

The driving wheels 21 are fitted upon the axle 6 so as to impart rotation thereto through escapement devices, indicated coni ventionally at 22,. and of any well-known form, whereby the axle will be rotated upon forward movement of the machine but will not rotate upon backward'movement of the machine. Frame bars 23 are secured to the top of the receptacle 7 and extend rearwardly and downwardly therefromv to be. joined to the rear ends of the main frame bars 5. To the rear extremities of the frame bars, I secure arcuate guiding plates 24, the ends of which are connected with the frame bars through bracesr 25 whereby the desired rigid construction will be effected. The beater or `gatherer is disposed between the guides 24 and between the rear extremitiesof the frame bars so that it may be lowered intooperative positionand raised into inoperative position without interference from any portion of the frame, and it isV carried by a shaft 26 mounted in and carried by the rear ends of bars 27 which are pivotally mounted` at their front ends upon the rear axle 6. The beater or gatherer consists of drum 28, which may be of any preferred detail construction, and teeth 29` of hooked or scooplike form, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. These teeth are secured rigidly upon the drum in rows parallel with the axis of the same and, of course, rotate about the shaft 26 with the drum. In theworkingposition illustrated in Fig. 2, the ends of the teeth in the several rows of teeth will successively penetrate the surface of the ground and pass` under the stones so as to loosen and remove the same. Both endteeth of each row are provided with side plates or retainers 30 so that the stones cannot escape over the ends ofthe several gangs or baskets formed by the teeth. Inl advance, of the drum, a chute 3lv is. supported by the gathering arms 27, and this chute consists of parallel bars 32 secured to and extending across hangers 33 and 34 depending fromf the gathering arms andi passing under the chute so that the chute will be firmly supported andthe bars 32 maintained in parallelism. It will be readily understoodfthat as the hooked teeth' 29 pass forwardly and downwardly in operation they will pass through the spaces between the several bars'32 and deposit the gathered' stones onto said bars down which the stones willY roll to be taken up by an elevator to be presently described. The hangers 33.l and 34 are,` of course, so located as to clear the elevator members and the gathering fingers,` and it will be noted that therear portions of the bars are steeper than their forward portions soy that the stones will quickly roll out of the way of the gathering fingers, while the forward extremities of the bars are turned up to form. stops 132 to prevent the stones rolling from thechute.

Thebeater is rotated through theV action of a driving sprocket wheel 35 upon the rear axle 6', a sprocket 36' on the beater or gatherer shaft, and a chain 37 trained around the saidl sprockets. The sprocket 35 is loose 42 adapted to engage the teeth 43 of a ratchet disk 44 which is secured upon the axle 6 in any desired manner and as will be readily understood upon reference to Fig. 8. lVhen the gatherer is not to operate, the sprocket is shifted out of engagement with the ratchet disk 44, as illustrated in Fig, S, but when the gatherer is to work, the

sprocket wheel is shifted so as to engage i the ratchet teeth 42 with the teeth 43, whereupon the rotation of the axle 6' will be transmitted to the sprocket. The sprockets 35 and 36 and the chain 37 are housed within ay gear casing or dust guard 45 which is of proper form and dimensions to enclose all the said parts and at its front endl is constructed on one side with aA ring or collar 46 to receive the end of a sleeve or thimble 47 fitted about the hub 33 and the ratchet disk 44 and held against movement in any desired manner, the said thimble being constructed with a longitudinal slot 48 to accommodate the pin 40 and permit the required sidewise movement of the sprocket The front end of the lever 4l is slotted, as indicated at 49, to be engaged by one end of an angle lever or bell crank 50, the oppositeend of which is pivotally connected to the rear end of a link 5l which extends to the front end of. the machine where it may be manipulated by the driver upon a seat 52 which is illustrated as mounted upon the front side of the receptacle 7but may, of course, be secured in any convenient manner, a hand lever 150 being provided adja cent the seat and connected to the link 5l. The bell crank '50.is arranged to move about a vertical axis so that reciprocation of the link 5l will effect oscillation of the lever 4l and thereby shift the hub 33 and the sprocket 35 into or out of engagement with the ratchet disk 44, as will be readily understood. Upon reference to Fig. l, it will be noted that the sprocket 35 is considerably larger than the sprocket 36 so that the gatherer will rotate at a higher speed than the driving wheels. This difference in speedv is desirable inasmuch as the gathering teeth are thereby caused to travel rearwardly through the soil instead of merely engaging and riding upon the samevin a manner similar to the. travel of the driving wheels.

The sprocket 36 is constructed and mountedl inv s uch a manner that the/.gatherer may yield and be` momentarily restrained from operating should a large rock or other im disk 55 so that` one side of the sprocket is closed and the opposite side is open defin ing a pocket which fits about a disk 56 hav` ing a hub 57 which is secured to the gatherer. shaft 26. Disposed withinthe rim 54 and connected therewith in such a manner that it must rotate therewith but may slide thereon toward or from thevdisk 56 is a plate 58 andconnected with said plate by bolts or screws 59 are a series of fingers 60 which are pivoted at their outer ends to the rim 54 adjacent the open side of the same. The open side of the sprocket is covered by,y a plate 61 which is secured to the edge 0f the rim 54 and has a hubslike member 62 which extends through an opening in the side of the gear case 45 and fits loosely about the shaft 26. The said hub-like member is provided with a flange or collar 63 bearing against the bar or arm 27 so that it cannot move along the shaft 26. A coiled spring 64 is housed within the hub-like member 62 and bears against the outer end wall of the same and yalso against the inner free extremities of the fingers 60. Normally, the spring is expanded so that the fingers are pressed inwardly and the clutch plate 58 is thereby held in contact with the driving disk 56, it being understood that the screws or bolts 59 are threaded through the fingers and bear constantly at their inner ends:k

against'the clutch plate k58. The sprocket 36, of course, rotates continuously as long as the driving sprocket 35 is locked to the axle 6, and when the clutch plate 58 is in its normal position bearing against the driving disk 56, the motion of the sprocket will be transmitted to the shaft 26 and the gatherers will be caused to travel around saidv shaft with the drinn 28. Should a large rock or other immovable obstruction be encountered, the resistance thereby offered to the rotation of the gathering member will cause the plate 58 to slip upon the driving disk` 56, overcoming the tension of the' spring 64, so that momentarily no motion will be imparted to the gatherer shaft 26. Ars soon as the obstruction has been cleared, however,'the normal tension of the spring 64 will assert itself and effect the desired clutching engagement between the plate 58 and the driving disk 56 sothat the operation of the gatherer will be resumed.

The lower end of the chute 31 is disposed below the rear axle 6 of thel machine and may be under the axle so that the elevating lingers 65 may enter the lower end of said chute and take up all the stones which may have been deposited in the chute. These elevating fingers are similar in construction to the gathering fingers 29 and are carried by parallel endless chains consisting of links 66 of considerable length and trained around square driving members 67 which are secured upon the rear axle 6. Standards 68 rise from the frame bars 23, and braces 69 extend between the upper ends of the said standards and the frame bars so that there is provided a rigid support for an upper shaft 70, upon which are securedk members 71 corresponding in form and dimension to the driving members 67 and disposedv respectively in the same vertical planes; This construction provides a very strong elevator which will operate posi tively and which will eliminate the liability of teeth being stripped as would be the case if Vordinary gears or sprockets were em-V ployed. yThe several links of the elevator chains are equal in length to any one side of the members 67 and 71 so that each link, when engaged by a driving member, will be supported throughout its length by the said member and a substantially flat support for the teeth of the elevator will be provided. The pivots connecting adjacent links are, of course, extended across the width of the machine and the teeth are carried by the said pivots. 72 extends downwardly and forwardly from the upper end of the elevator to a point over the receptacle 7 and is supported by the receptacle and by standards 123 rising from the frame bars 28. This chute is composed of parallel bars 172, the stones raised by the elevator being delivered at the upper end of the chute and then rolling down the same into the receptacle in an obvious manner.

To effect the raising and lowering of the gathering instrumentality, I provide mechanism which may be readily thrown intoor out of operative position by the driver of the machine but it will be actuated by power transmitted from the rear axle. Mounted in `bearings 73 upon the frame bars 23 is .a shaft 74 which extends across the machine, and upon the ends of this shaft 74 are secured gear wheels 7 5 which mesh with gear wheels '76 secured upon the outer ends of stub shafts 77 which are mounted in suitable bearings upon the under side of the frame bars 5. Upon Vthe inner ends of the stub shafts 7 7 are secured cams or eccentrics 78 which are so disposed that their peripheries will ride under rollers 79 carried by brackets 80 vrising from the gatherer arms 27. Obviously, if the cam or eccentric be rotated so that its high part or greatest l An upper chute lll) . 86: extends.

its outer side with'aratchet disk 84. Se'

cured uponA4 the shaft alongside the said ratchet is a disk 85 having a pawl 86 pivotally mounted upon its sid'eiii-position tog-engage the-said ratchet 84k andnormal-l'y forced to said ratchet by a spring- 87,y as will beread'ily understood uponreferenceto Fig. 5.'- In the periphery ofthe disk 85 arel diametrically opposite notches- 88,*acrossf one of which notches one endV of the dogor pawl Mounted upon the frame in front and in rear of the disk85are levers 89I carrying rollers 90v adapted to engage the notches 88v and thereby hold the disk against movement and release the dogY S6 from the ratchet 8-fl. A link 91 connectsthe levers for simultaneous movement and the parts are so arranged relative to the respective pivots that therollers 90 will be Inoved in opposite directions upon actuation of the levers. A cablev or other flexible connection 92 is attached to the upper end ofl the for- 'ward lever 89 and extends tothe front of.

the machine within convenient reach ofthe A post 93 rises.

86 will engage the ratchet and the rotation ofthe sprocketr 8ly will then impart movement` to the shaft 74 which' will be transmitted through the gears 75 and 76 to the cams or eccentrics 7 8 andthe gatherer consequently raised or lowered. V'Vhen the cable 92 is pulled forward, the rollers 90 are withdrawn from the notches 88y and they dog or'pawl 86 is at once thrown into engagement with the ratchet 86 and `the shaft 74 rotated. The cable is held only momentarily andthe spring 193 then retracts and swings the forward lever 89 rearwardly thus holding the rollers90 t0 the periphery of the disk 85 so that, when the disk has made one-half a revolution, the rollers will reenter the notches `88, one; roller bearing upon4r the pawland vreleasing it from the ratchet. Ay second pull upon the cable will permit the disk andthe cams' to complete the revolution so that -a slight pull upon the cable will result in automatic elevation of the gatherer and a second pull will result in its return to working position.

It is thought the operation of the machine willV be readily understood from the foregoing description, taken in connection with theV accompanying drawings. As the machine is drawn over the field, the rear driving wheels 21 will obviously impart motion tothe rea-r axle 6 and if the sprocket- 35, on said axle befshifted into the working-positi`on, the motion will be transmitted to the gatherer shaft so that the series of gathering teeth Q9 will be caused to pass through the soil and take up the stones thereon. The gathering teeth will deliver the stones to the lower chute from which they will beX removed by the elevator and delivered to the upper chute whence they will pass into the receptacle- The machine is very compact` and does not include any excessive dead weight-"so that, while it will efficiently accomplish the purpose for whichl it is designed, it may be expeditiously and economically built and will be of light draft when. in use.

Having thus described. the invention what isvclaimed asnew is:

l. In a stone-gatherer, the combination of a portable frame includingv a rear axle, a rotatable gathering instrumentality supported from the frame in rear ofthe axle, gearing connecting said instrumentality with the axle, a receptacle on the frame in advance of the axle, a chute having its rear end adjacent the top of the gathering instrumentality and its forward end beneath the axle, an elevatorfhaving its lower end mounted upon and driven directly bythe axle, and ay chute,-

extending downwardly and forwardly be'- tweeny thetop of the elevatorV and: the receptacle. c i

2. In a stone gatherer,the combination of'a portable frame including a rear axle, a rotatable `gathering instrumentality supported in rear of the axle and-gearedto the same, a chute rigidly supported on the frame between saidv instrumentality and theaxle and extending under the axle, an elevator mounted on and rising from the axle and driven directly thereby, the elevator bein constructed to passV througlrthe lower en of the chute and take material therefrom, and a receptacle on the frame in Vadvance of the elevator and receiving material therefrom.

8. Ina stone-gatherer, the combination of a portable frameY including a rear axle, a rotatable gathering instrumentality supported inA rear of'and driven from the axle, achute secured rigidly upon the frame in rear ofthe axle and extending from a pointv adjacent the top of the gathering instrumentality'to'a:

the lframe in advance'of the axle, and an elevator mounted on and driven directly by the axle and constructed to pass through the lower end of the chute and between the stops thereat to take material from the chute and deliver it to the receptacle.

4. In a stone-gatherer, the combination of a portable frame, a rotatable gathering instrumentality mounted thereon, a plurality of hangers secured upon the frame, a plurality of parallel bars secured rigidly upon and connected by the hangers and receiving material from the gathering instrumentality, and an elevator disposed over the lower ends of the parallel bars and including series of parallel free rigid lingers arranged to pass between the lower ends of the parallel bars and take up material deposited thereon.

5. In a stone-gatherer, the combination of a portable frame, a rotatable gathering instrumentality mounted upon kthe frame and comprising a cylindrical drum and series of rigid curved fingers secured rigidly upon the drum, the fingers in each series being parallel and free of each other throughout their extent, a chute supported rigidly uponthe frame to receive material from the gathering instrumentality and consisting of a series of inclined parallel bars extending into the path of the said ingers to permit the ingers to pass between the bars, and an elevator disposed over the lower ends of the said bars and including series of similar lingers arranged to pass between the lower ends of the parallel bars and take up material deposited thereon.

In testimony whereof I aliix my signature.

LELAND D. TETER. [n s.] 

